Jaguar's Webber backs Klien

Mark Webber has backed new Jaguar team-mate Christian Klien to make the grade in Formula One.

The Austrian replaces Justin Wilson at the Milton Keynes-based team for next season but the appointment has been criticised in some quarters as being inspired more by Klien’s lucrative sponsorship backing than his talent.

However, the 20-year-old has performed creditably in recent tests to prompt Australian team-mate Webber to voice his approval.

He said: “He’s pretty handy, that’s for sure. He’s very mature, very relaxed, very disciplined and makes very few mistakes. He’s very controlled in himself so I’m sure he’ll do a good job.”

Jaguar’s director of engineering Ian Pocock again insisted money was not behind Klien’s signing and claimed the youngster has more potential than predecessors Wilson and Antonio Pizzonia.

“What really impressed me was the speed in which Christian was able to learn the nuances of a new car,” said Pocock.

“Antonio and Justin were good but Christian’s learning curve and bandwidth was extremely impressive.”